Little Ace
by T. F. Crosby
Summary: Sometimes people do stupid things to protect someone they love, even when they know it will hurt someone else they love.


Hey people! Just a short (or not short) power point (sorta) presentation before the story.

1. According to the episode "Velocity" the original Storm Hawks dominated the race. Burner stated that the race hadn't been run in ten years (prior to that one). That would mean the Storm Hawks were taken down ten years ago.

2. In that case, because he's fourteen (according to the official site) Aerrow would have been four at the time.

3. In an interview, Asaph Fipke said that Dark Ace is in his late twenties. (I'm going with 28 and it's not because I am!) That would make him 18 at that time.

4. The UK opener shows the original leader and he doesn't appear to be any older than Ace, so that would make him about 18 as well. So with Aerrow being four then, I highly doubt he would be Aerrow's father. (In that opener, Aerrow simply states tha he is the last surviving descendant of the original Storm Hawks. No relation is actually given.) I'm not making this point to debunk anyone's theory that he is Aerrow's father. I'm simply making an observation and explaining why I refer to him as Aerrow's uncle, rather than father. I could be right, I could be wrong. Who knows? (The blond depicted appears to be older, but that's neither here nor there.) Regardless of anyone's relations, I hope you enjoy this story for what it is. A story. Ain't conjeture fun?!

Since I have no clue what the names of the original Storm Hawks are, I made them up. (duh!) The same goes for Aerrow's parents. (Duh, again!) And the fact I have no idea how many originals there were (or if there were other species or females) Of, course I made that up as well. Okay, enough blather. I hope you enjoy.

**-xxx-**

**Little Ace**

The Condor sat alone behind some high brush nearly concealed from view while the entirety of the Storm Hawks was inside the house. Phelan (their carrier pilot) stood in the doorway staring at what little he could see of his precious ship, his lip quivering.

"Oh, for cryin' out loud, Phelan," the redheaded Sky Knight groaned, "the Condor's not going anywhere."

Phelan scoffed. "Considering you almost lost it in a game of Spar."

"Rowan!" The Sky Knight's older brother glared at him. "You were gambling?"

"No," replied Rowan, offended at the very idea. "I just told the guy there was no way he could beat me at Spar." He paused. "And I didn't have any money so I bet the Condor." He rattled off the last sentence as if it were a single word.

His brother shook his head. "What am I gonna do with you?"

"We could just throw him into the Wastelands," Eilah, their navigator and tactician said. "Ace would make a great Sky Knight."

Rowan glared. "I wasn't gambling! I just made a bet!"

"And that's completely different," she replied with a smirk.

The redhead growled. "Speaking of Ace, where is he?" he said, completely changing his tone.

"He's in the backyard playing with Aerrow," the blond-haired Luke said.

The Sky Knight looked at his brother. "I still can't believe you went and named him that. It was just a joke."

"Ace seems to like it," Eilah said.

"Of course, _he _does," Rowan replied, flatly.

"Hey, spazz-boy," Luke said, referring to Phelan, "why don't you go check and see if we've received any transmissions or anything."

Phelan's eyes lit up. "Thank you," he said, bolting out the door.

They all looked at Luke. "Just makin' him happy."

**-xxx-**

Out in the backyard the Storm Hawks' sharpshooter, and Rowan's co-pilot, was being accosted by a four year old redhead. The boy pounced on the raven-haired teen, who was lying on the ground, and sat on his chest. Ace grinned at the ever-exuberant Aerrow. The boy looked exactly like his Uncle Rowan; red hair; green eyes; even the facial expressions. Then again, he also looked like a redheaded version of his dad. (Aurick was a brunet.)

"Hey, Unckie Ace?"

"What is it, Mini-brat?"

Aerrow grimaced at the nickname. Ace laughed. Of all the nicknames Ace had for him, the boy only liked a few of them.

"I'm not, Mini-brat," he said, folding his arms across his chest.

"How 'bout…Mini-Red?" Ace said with a grin.

"No," Aerrow replied, flatly.

Ace rattled off a few more nicknames while Aerrow stared at him crossly. He tried not to burst into laughter at the boy's expression. It was the same look Rowan had given him when he kept rattling off "pun" nicknames for Rowan after an incident on Tropica.

"How about, Stitch?"

Aerrow gave him a weird look and then he sighed. "Don't you know anything?"

Ace snickered. "Apparently not." Aerrow continued to stare at him. "So," Ace began slowly, "what's your nickname, again?"

"You know what it is," said Aerrow, potting his hands on his hips.

The teen scratched his head. "You know, I can't quite remember." The boy's faces were getting funnier and Ace was trying his best not to laugh. "Didn't it start with 'tiny' or 'small' or something like that?"

Aerrow frowned, his hands still on his hips. "Unckie Ace! You know it's Little Ace!"

"Oh, right, right-right-right. I forgot."

Ace put his arms behind his head and closed his eyes, pretending to have fallen asleep. He could hear the four year old sighing. The boy started to beat him on the chest like a drum, humming. Ace fought a smile pushing its way onto his face. Aerrow pressed his face against Ace's, grabbing the teen's ears yelling,

"Wake up, Unckie Ace!"

Ace burst into laughter. He sat up holding Aerrow in a big bear-hug, kissing him all over his face. The four year old cackled, putting his arms around his Uncle Ace's neck. He stood up with the boy hanging onto his neck. Their stomach's growled.

"I'm hungry," said Aerrow.

"Yeah, me, too," Ace said, walking towards the door. "Let's get something to eat."

"Mommy, I'm hungry," Aerrow called as they walked through the doorway into the kitchen.

"Yeah, Mommy, I'm hungry," Ace reiterated.

Aerrow's mother, Leona, answered (in amusement), "So, what do my two little boys want to eat?"

The two grinned replying, "Grilled cheese and fries."

"Wiff chockit milk," Aerrow added, now hanging upside down (sort of) from Ace's waist.

"Only the best meal ever," Ace said.

Eilah peered into the kitchen. She turned back to the boys in the living room and said, "Really? What are the odds of an eighteen year old and a four year old living on the same wavelength?"

"With Ace, about two to one," Aurick said with a smirk.

"Ya know Ace," Rowan shouted from his spot on the couch, "if you really wanna appear smarter, you need to hang around people stupider than you."

Ace looked at Aerrow. "Now pay good attention to this, Little Ace." Aerrow grinned. "That's why I hang around you, Phelan and Luke."

Everyone in the living room stared at Rowan. The Sky Knight sat back in his seat. "I walked right into that didn't I?"

"You've always been good at that," his brother said.

Rowan gave him a mock glare. "Well, at least he added Phelan and Luke this time."

"You ever noticed how he never mentions Eilah?" Luke noted.

"That's because he's smart," replied Eilah.

Back at the kitchen table the two _four year olds_ were finishing their food…and blowing bubbles in their chocolate milk. Aerrow burst into laughter when Ace blew too hard and his milk spat back in his face. Even Leona had to laugh, despite the mess Ace had made.

"Oops," said Ace, wiping his face. He gave Leona a sheepish grin.

"All right, Aerrow," Leona said, smiling, "it's time for your nap."

"But Mommy. I don't wanna take a nap when Unckie Ace is here."

Ace looked at Leona. She nodded. "Come on, Little Dude," said Ace, picking Aerrow up. The four year old wrapped his arms and legs around him as they headed for the living room and stairs.

"Naptime?" queried Aurick.

"Yep." Ace liked the short answer.

Rowan smirked. "For who? You or Aerrow?" _Score!_

"For both of us," replied Ace. "Although you need beauty sleep more than anyone else."

_Un-score!_

"I do have my own comment," Ace continued, "but I know better than to put my foot in my mouth around Eilah."

"I have gotten you before," Rowan pointed out.

"Yes, yes, Rowan," said Luke smugly, "but those moments are few and far between."

"If you guys are done," said Ace, "Aerrow and I are gonna go take a nap."

"I'm Little Ace," Aerrow squawked as Ace started up the stairs.

"We know," the patrons of the living room said in unison.

Aerrow made a face.

Ace tapped him on the back of the head saying, "Don't make faces at your Uncle Rowan…or anyone else."

Rowan made a face of his own. However, his was directed at Ace. The rest of the group laughed.

**-xxx-**

When they reached the four year old's room, Ace plopped him down onto his bed. "So, what face did ya make?"

Aerrow showed him the face.

"Alright. The best one," Ace said as they gave each other a high-hive.

"Okay, Little Man, time for your nap."

"Read me a story," Aerrow said, rubbing his eyes. Ace smiled. "Okay. How about…." He scanned the bookshelf on the wall near the foot of Aerrow's bed. "Possum come a knockin'?"

"Yeah, " the boy responded gleefully.

The teen sat down on the floor next to the bed and leaned against the wall. Aerrow inched his way across his bed, getting as close to Ace as he could.

"Ready?"

"Wait." Aerrow stood up on his bed, reaching for his bear sitting on the shelf. "Can't forget Blue bear."

"Can't forget Blue Bear."

Blue Bear had belonged to Ace when he was Aerrow's age. He had given the bear, one of the few possessions he had, to Aerrow when the redhead turned two.

"Ready now?"

The little redhead nodded.

"I shall commence," Ace said stately, opening the book. "Possum come a knockin' at the door, at the door. Possum come a knockin' at the door."

**-xxx-**

Rowan and Luke sat at the kitchen table munching on leftover pizza. Phelan, about half an hour earlier, bolted into the house telling everyone that absolutely nothing was going on, made himself a bowl of Odessa chili, and bolted back out of the house to the Condor. (Moments with Phelan away from the Condor were usually short lived.)

"How long's Ace been up there?" queried Luke.

"Knowing Ace, he probably fell asleep, too," Eilah replied. (She had since joined the boys and was eating a chicken sandwich.)

"I'll go check on him, er, them," said Aurick as he turned and headed for the stairs.

It was quiet upstairs, which meant that _both_ of them were asleep. Aurick peered into his son's room; a smile crossed his face. Ace was sitting up with his head lying against the bed. Aerrow was curled up in his lap, loosely holding onto a book.

"And to think you were so scared to hold him when he was a baby," Aurick said to himself. "You've come a long way Ace. However, I get the feeling that all of this is going to come crashing to the ground very soon."

**-xxx-**

Their nearly-three hour power nap had made them hungry. After munching on a variety of food items; pretzels; corndogs; pickles; cheese cubes (just to name a few), much to Leona's chagrin, Ace and Little Ace started a wrestling match in the living room. Rowan and Luke would periodically join in, only to be pounced upon (and inevitably defeated) by a four year old. Unfortunately, their joyous playtime did not last as long as they hoped.

Phelan burst into the house, breathing heavily. "Talons! Sixty kilometers north. They're heading straight for us."

Ace sat up on his knees with Aerrow hanging onto his back, his face horror-stricken. If this was who he thought it was….

"Two Sky Knight squadrons have already engaged them," Phelan continued. "It's not looking good. We gotta go, guys."

"Who's leading the attack?" asked Rowan, his face now bearing a serious expression.

Phelan didn't answer; he didn't have to. His expression said it all.

_No. Not here. Not now_, Ace thought.

The others quickly said their goodbyes as they walked out the door.

"You be careful," Aurick said, giving Rowan a hug. "All of you." As the squad walked out into the yard, Aurick called out to Ace from the porch. "Hey, Ace!" The raven-haired teen turned around. Aurick said nothing further when their eyes locked. Ace looked anxious; his eyes held regret, sorrow.

Aerrow bounded out of the house breaking their gaze. The boy was clutching a toy skimmer in his left hand.

"Ace, you comin'?" called Rowan.

"I'll be there in a minute," he replied.

The boy's father walked back into the house to give Ace (a young man he had come to see as a brother) and Aerrow a moment alone.

"Hey, buddy," he said, kneeling down in front of the boy. He put his hands on the boy's face and kissed him on the forehead. "I want you to listen very carefully, Aerrow. Can you listen carefully for me?"

The boy nodded fervently. "Yes, Unckie Ace."

Ace took a deep breath. "Sometimes people can do really stupid things to protect someone they love; even when they know it will hurt someone else they love.

"What's wrong, Unckie Ace?" asked Aerrow, sensing the fear and sorrow in Ace's voice.

"Never mind that now," Ace continued, his voice becoming shaky. "If you never remember anything else I've ever told you, remember this. No matter what happens, no matter what I, or you, do, always remember that I love you. And there's nothing that can change that. Will you remember that?"

"Yes, Unckie Ace." The boy put his arms around his neck as he put his arms around the boy, pulling him into a hug. "I love you, Unckie Ace."

"I love you, Aerrow," Ace replied. "Always. Never forget that."

"Come on, Ace," Rowan said, walking up to them and placing his hand on Ace's shoulder. "We need to go."

Aerrow handed his Uncle Ace the toy skimmer. "This is for you."

"Thanks, Little Ace," he said softly. Ace took the toy and stood up, composing himself before turning to his Sky Knight. "Let's go."

Rowan tousled Aerrow's hair. "See ya later, Squirt."

"It's Little Ace!" the boy called out as the two teens walked away.

The Sky Knight looked over at his co-pilot. The raven-haired teen had a deadpan look on his face. Even though Ace was being stoic, Rowan knew something was wrong.

"Ace? What's wrong?"

He looked at the redhead, smiling. "Nothing. Let's go kick some Talon butt!"

"Now that sounds like the Ace I know and love."

The two boys raced for the Condor.

"Whoever knocks the fewest Talons of their sky-rides buys everyone dinner!" Ace yelled as he sped ahead of Rowan.

"Hey! You still owe me dinner for that race on Blizzaris!" Rowan yelled back.

"That doesn't count," Ace said as they entered the Condor. "You got help from Toby-Max."

Ace stood in the doorway as Rowan walked onto the bridge, joining the others. He looked over his friends whispering, "Please forgive me for what I'm about to do."

**-xxx-**

The Talons were approaching and their commander was staring right at him; a sinister smile crossed his face. Ace stood above his Sky Knight, sword drawn, and bearing a sinister smile of his own. But it was all a façade for the Talon commander. He didn't want to do it, not his friends; but the Talon commander had made it perfectly clear: it was either them or he took the boy. There was no way Ace was going to let those Cyclonian bastards touch Aerrow. Little did Ace know that the wretched Talon commander would still go after Aurick and Leona.

"I'm sorry," Ace whispered, sitting on the back of a Switchblade behind a Talon soldier.

"What was that, kid?" the Talon said gruffly.

"Nothing," snapped Ace. "Let's just get out of here."

The Talon smirked. "Regretting your actions?"

Ace only growled in response. His outward appearance may have shown hatred and depravity, but he was completely dead inside. He had just destroyed everything he ever loved. And now Aerrow, Little Ace, would hate him forever.

As he entered the Cyclonian destroyer a thought struck him. He hadn't watched them go down; he couldn't. So, if he didn't see it with his own eyes, could he truly be absolutely positive that they were…

**-xxx-**.

_I assure you the Storm Hawks are no more_.

Those words played over and over again in his mind. He stood at the end of a corridor seeming to be staring into oblivion. He hadn't taken any notice that Ravess was now standing next to him.

She knew that look. He had been thinking about them again. "You're thinking about them," she said flatly. There was no point in beating around the bush with him.

"I didn't watch them go down," he said. "I couldn't."

"You think they're still—"

"I don't know Ravess," he said, looking over at her. "I don't know."

He turned the right corner and headed down the corridor. The sound of his boots striking the floor gave off an empty echo, an echo that he had despised since he first stepped foot into this abominable citadel over ten years ago. And as long as he remained there, he would never be able to shake the feeling he had received when that depraved lunatic of a dictator laid his hand on his then eighteen year old shoulder. He could leave and never return. He was no longer forced to stay. But he wondered, if he did chose to leave, would he still be able to protect….

_No matter what happens, no matter what I, or you, do, always remember that I love you. And there's nothing that can change that_.

_**fin**_

**-xxx-**

Because Storm Hawks is currently so wide open for origin theories, it's at its most fun peak. Regardless of where Asaph and the gang take it, we'll still be writing our own versions, even after the show has ended. I wonder if they've read any of our stuff.

Here's to making the world a nerdier place!

Bonus material:

Condor pilot: I thought you were asleep.

Ace: I was asleep. Until Rudolph the red-haired reindork woke me up!

(I just can't help myself.)


End file.
